Americans United - Jehovah's Witnesseshttps://www.au.org/tags/jehovahs-witnesses
enHalloween In The Public Schools: It Doesn’t Have To Be A Scary Time For The Constitution https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/halloween-in-the-public-schools-it-doesn-t-have-to-be-a-scary-time-for-the
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">When it comes to Halloween, public school officials should emphasize inclusion and employ sensitivity.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>In a few weeks, Religious Right groups, aided and abetted by their allies at the Fox News Channel, will start their annual carping about the “war on Christmas.” But before that starts, we have to get through Halloween.</p><p>Halloween has become a big business. Americans will <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevecooper/2013/10/22/halloween-by-the-numbers/">spend billions</a> this year to celebrate the spooky holiday. In the main, it’s all in good fun. For many of us, there’s something charming about little kids in costumes ringing doorbells for a fun-size Snickers bar. Many adults enjoy the opportunity to dress up and party as well.</p><p>But not everyone is a fan. Jehovah’s Witness and some fundamentalist Christians swear off Halloween, warning that it’s tied to the occult. TV preacher Pat Robertson <a href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/pat-robertson-halloween-festival-demons">has attacked</a> the holiday <a href="https://www.au.org/media/press-releases/pat-robertson%E2%80%99s-christian-broadcasting-network-warns-americans-of-%E2%80%98demonic%E2%80%99">repeatedly</a>.</p><p>Of course, most Americans view the holiday quite differently and don’t take all of this talk about ghosts, demons and monsters quite so seriously. Nor do they celebrate Halloween as a religious holiday.</p><p>But the concerns are real for some people. In light of them, how should public schools react?</p><p>It’s worth pointing out that public schools are not required to acknowledge Halloween and some don’t. But many parents, perhaps fueled by nostalgia, yearn for things like Halloween parties and parades for their children. Schools cancel the holiday at their own risk, as education officials in one New Jersey town <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/16/school-cancels-halloween_n_5998286.html">learned recently</a>.</p><p>Rather than exile Halloween entirely, some schools are deemphasizing the holiday’s scarier (and bloodier) aspects. Kids are told to leave the violent costumes at home and opt for something less intense.</p><p>Another option is to tie the holiday to some aspect of the curriculum. For example, students could be encouraged to dress as famous figures from history or as their favorite characters from literature.</p><p>Schools could also use the opportunity to teach about Halloween. The history of this holiday is truly fascinating, and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Death-Makes-Holiday-Cultural-Halloween/dp/1582343055">several books</a> have been published about its origins. There is no reason why public schools can’t teach this from an academic and objective perspective.</p><p>No matter what approach they take, school officials should emphasize inclusion and employ sensitivity. Not all children may want to wear costumes and dwell on the scary stuff, and that’s all right. They can still enjoy the other aspects of the festivities.</p><p>Finally, parents have a role to play as well. If officials at a public school decide they would rather not sponsor any Halloween events, people in the community should accept that. Neighborhood groups and families can sponsor parties and events instead. And, of course, there’s always trick or treat.</p><p>With a little common sense, we can keep the spooky fun while still respecting everyone’s rights.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/religious-displays-and-holidays">Religious Displays and Holidays</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/halloween">Halloween</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/pat-robertson">Pat Robertson</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/new-jersey">new jersey</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/jehovahs-witnesses">Jehovah&#039;s Witnesses</a></span></div></div>Mon, 27 Oct 2014 16:25:28 +0000Rob Boston10631 at https://www.au.orghttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/halloween-in-the-public-schools-it-doesn-t-have-to-be-a-scary-time-for-the#commentsFreedom Fighter: Remembering Lillian Gobitas, Defender Of The Right Of Consciencehttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/freedom-fighter-remembering-lillian-gobitas-defender-of-the-right-of
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Suddenly it was open season on Jehovah’s Witnesses. </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>I was perusing the Sunday <em>New York Times</em> yesterday when a name on the obituary page jumped out at me: <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/07/us/lillian-gobitas-klose-90-dies-stood-against-mandatory-pledge.html?module=Search&amp;mabReward=relbias%3As%2C%7b%221%22%3A%22RI%3A6%22%7d&amp;_r=0">Lillian Gobitas</a>.</p><p>Gobitas died Aug. 22 at age 90. The name may not mean much to you unless you’re a student of church-state history, but we all owe her a debt.</p><p>In 1935, Lillian Gobitas was 12 years old and was attending an elementary school in Minersville, Pa. She and her family belonged to the Jehovah’s Witness faith, and Lillian and her brother, William, had decided they would no longer participate in the mandatory Pledge of Allegiance. They were expelled that day.</p><p>Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that flag salutes are a form of idolatry. Their only allegiance, they argue, is to God. Citing religious freedom and the right of conscience, the children refused to take part.</p><p>The case went all the way to the Supreme Court. Remarkably, in 1940 the high court ruled 8-1 against the Gobitas family in <em><a href="http://www.oyez.org/cases/1901-1939/1939/1939_690">Minersville School District v. Gobitis</a></em>. (A printer’s error resulted in the family’s name being misspelled as “Gobitis” on the legal documents; it was never corrected.) Public school students, the justices said, could be compelled the recite the Pledge of Allegiance as a way of fostering “national cohesion.”</p><p>The fallout from that ruling was grim. Suddenly it was open season on Jehovah’s Witnesses. Witness children were expelled from schools around the country. In Litchfield, Ill., a mob attacked some Witnesses who were distributing religious literature. In Richwood, W.Va., the chief of police led a crowd of hooligans as they rounded up Witnesses, forced them to drink castor oil and paraded them out of town.</p><p>In Jackson, Miss., a crowd attacked a trailer park where many Witnesses lived and drove them out. In Kennebunkport, Maine, a frenzied mob burned down the local Kingdom Hall. In Nebraska, a Witness man was lured from his home, dragged away and castrated.</p><p>Just two weeks after the <em>Gobitis</em> ruling, the U.S. Department of Justice had recorded hundreds of attacks on Witnesses nationwide.</p><p>Perhaps shaken by all of this, the Supreme Court in 1942 accepted an identical flag-salute case, this one from West Virginia. There had been a few changes on the court since 1940, and this time the court got it right. Ruling 6-3 in 1943’s <em><a href="http://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1949/1942/1942_591">West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette</a></em>, the justices declared that public schools may not violate students’ rights of conscience by requiring flag salutes and recitation of the Pledge.</p><p>The decision is notable for this eloquent passage by Justice Robert Jackson: “If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion, or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein.”</p><p>When <em>Gobitis</em> and <em>Barnette</em> were argued, the words “under God” did not appear in the Pledge of Allegiance. They were added by an act of Congress in 1954 as slap at “Godless communism” in the Soviet Union. These days, most disputes over the Pledge involve atheist students who don’t want to say it due to its religious content.</p><p>Americans United deals with a few of these cases every year. We don’t get a flood of them, but every September we can count on a few trickling in. Some public school teacher or administrator somewhere doesn’t understand the law and tries to compel an atheist, humanist, agnostic or even a religious student who doesn’t want to recite the Pledge to say it.</p><p>Thankfully, these matters are easy to clear up. All AU has to do is write to the school, cite the <em>Barnette</em> case and wait for school officials to apologize to the student whose rights they have violated.</p><p>It’s a simple fix – and for it we can thank a gutsy young woman named Lillian Gobitas. </p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/pledge-allegiance">Pledge of Allegiance</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/religious-refusals-and-rfra">Religious Refusals and RFRA</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/lillian-gobitas">Lillian Gobitas</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/robert-jackson">Robert Jackson</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/minersville">Minersville</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/pledge-allegiance">Pledge of Allegiance</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/jehovahs-witnesses">Jehovah&#039;s Witnesses</a></span></div></div>Mon, 08 Sep 2014 14:55:45 +0000Rob Boston10472 at https://www.au.orghttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/freedom-fighter-remembering-lillian-gobitas-defender-of-the-right-of#commentsBackroom Backing: North Carolina City Quietly Votes To Fund Jehovah’s Witnesses Convention https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/backroom-backing-north-carolina-city-quietly-votes-to-fund-jehovah-s
<a href="/about/people/simon-brown">Simon Brown</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">What if a Muslim group wanted to bring thousands of people into Raleigh for a weekend of prayer and proselytizing? Would the city fund that convention? Seems pretty unlikely.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>As part of a backroom deal, the city council of Raleigh, N.C., has decided to provide $150,000 so the Jehovah’s Witnesses can hold a major event locally.</p><p><a href="http://www.indyweek.com/triangulator/archives/2012/10/22/raleigh-city-council-votes-in-secret-to-give-jehovahs-witnesses-150000">Council members approved the handout earlier this month</a> in a closed-door vote so that the Jehovah’s Witnesses can hold their annual convention at PNC Arena in Raleigh next year, <em>Indy Week</em> reported.</p><p>Unfortunately, this is apparently standard operating procedure: Since 2008, Raleigh has doled out $875,000 in tax dollars to the religious group for its gathering, <em>Indy Week</em> said. </p><p>City officials justified its action by noting that the money goes to PNC Arena, not directly to a religious organization, and they say economic benefit is the rationale.</p><p>Americans United doesn’t exactly buy that defense, and we’re raising questions.</p><p>“This seems like a plain violation of the separation of church and state and the Constitution,” AU Associate Legal Director Alex J. Luchenitser told <em>Indy Week</em>. “Government can’t fund religious meetings.”</p><p>Concludes the AU lawyer, “You can’t ask the taxpayers to support a religious belief they don’t hold.” </p><p>That’s why Luchenitser said Americans United will be asking Raleigh to stop funding the convention now and in the future.</p><p>City officials, however, may be reluctant to comply.</p><p>“The bottom line: if the group meets the strict funding criteria and contracts hotels rooms with our hotel partners while generating direct economic impact,…we are open to possibly assisting regardless of the group type,” Loren Gold of the Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau told <em>Indy Week</em>.</p><p>What if a Muslim group wanted to bring thousands of people into Raleigh for a weekend of prayer and proselytizing? Would the city fund that convention? Seems pretty unlikely, but those are the kinds of requests a local government can get when it when it starts subsidizing religious activity.</p><p>Even though the city council has been trying to conduct its religion-funding business in secret, the word is clearly out about what’s going on in Raleigh. The city would be wise to cut ties with the Jehovah’s Witnesses now that Americans United is watching.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/other-government-subsidies-religious-institutions-not-including-schools">Other Government Subsidies of Religious Institutions</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/jehovahs-witnesses">Jehovah&#039;s Witnesses</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/pnc-arena">PNC Arena</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/greater-raleigh-convention-and-visitors-bureau">Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Location:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/our-work/grassroots/north-carolina">North Carolina</a></span></div></div>Tue, 23 Oct 2012 18:01:14 +0000Simon Brown7658 at https://www.au.orghttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/backroom-backing-north-carolina-city-quietly-votes-to-fund-jehovah-s#commentsDefusing Hate: The Church-State Wall Can Stop A Rising Wave Of Intolerance https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/defusing-hate-the-church-state-wall-can-stop-a-rising-wave-of-intolerance
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">The best way to respond to hate and bigotry is to embrace basic principles, not trash them.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p><strong> </strong></p>
<p>The wave of anti-Muslim hysteria sweeping the nation right now is deplorable. Americans of goodwill who value the Founding Fathers’ commitment to religious liberty must stand against it.</p>
<p>Discouraging incidents continue to mount. In lower Manhattan, protests have erupted over plans to build an Islamic community center two blocks from the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. In Murfreesboro, Tenn., some local residents are trying to block construction of a mosque. In Gainesville, Fla., a radical Christian fundamentalist pastor plans to <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/09/09/indonesia.quran.letter/?hpt=T2">burn Qurans</a> this Saturday.</p>
<p>The sad thing is, we’ve been through this before. It happened in 1838 when Missouri Gov. Lilburn Boggs issued an order demanding the expulsion or extermination of Mormons in that state. It happened in 1844 when bands of “nativist” Protestants <a href="http://www.aoh61.com/history/bible/rob_boston.htm">torched Catholic churches</a> in Philadelphia. It happened in 1941 when mobs attacked, beat and killed Jehovah’s Witnesses because they refused, on religious grounds, to salute the flag.</p>
<p>It’s understandable that some responsible people want to respond to the bigotry they see all around them. In Hartford, Conn., the city council has decided to ask a Muslim leader to <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/09/08/hartford-councils-inclusion-muslim-prayers-sparks-outrage/?test=latestnews">open its meetings</a> with a prayer from the Quran.</p>
<p>I’m sure this decision was born of good intentions, but it’s the wrong response. Rather than encourage government bodies to sponsor Islamic, Christian or any other type of religious service, we would do better to reaffirm our commitment to separation of church and state – the platform upon which religious liberty rests.</p>
<p>As AU Executive Director Barry W. Lynn put it, “Now, I think no general body should start its sessions with any prayer. City council is supposed to make sure potholes get fixed and residents have the best cable service possible. They are not supposed to become pastors or religious officials in any way.”</p>
<p>But Lynn also pointed out that “fundamental Christian hypocrisy” of some groups demanding that meetings open with their prayers but protesting when other religious groups seek that right.</p>
<p>As bad as the situation is right now, it’s also a teachable moment. This is an opportunity for leaders with vision to reaffirm all that is great about America – to remind our people of the importance of diversity and stand up for equality for everyone regardless of their beliefs about religion.</p>
<p>The demagogues have had their say. Now it’s time for powerful voices to rebuke Newt Gingrich, Sarah Palin and all of those who claim to champion the values of our Constitution even as they mock them. It’s time to remind America of the core vision of the Founders and what they intended when they adopted the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. And to do this without apology -- with no “buts.”</p>
<p>Above all, it’s time to embrace the idea that government has no business meddling in religion. Let individuals say whatever prayer or secular reflection that is meaningful to them, with the state sponsoring none. Our leaders should remind the people that under the First Amendment, all religions must be treated equally – with no faith receiving favors or burdens.</p>
<p>The best way to respond to hate and bigotry is to embrace basic principles, not trash them: That religious and philosophical diversity is a good thing. That the government cares not where, how or if you worship. That complete religious liberty for all is best ensured by the separation of church and state.</p>
<p>The best answer to bigots is not to take away their right to speak – but to offer better speech by explaining exactly how wrong they are and why their views run counter to the spirit of freedom that animates this nation.</p>
<p>P.S. Muslims have been living in America since our nation began, and many of our Founders supported their rights. James Hutson, a historian at the Library of Congress, has an <a href="http://www.loc.gov/loc/lcib/0205/tolerance.html">interesting piece</a> on this.</p>
</div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/islam">Islam</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/jehovahs-witnesses">Jehovah&#039;s Witnesses</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/newt-gingrich">Newt Gingrich</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/religious-bigotry">religious bigotry</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/sarah-palin">sarah palin</a></span></div></div>Thu, 09 Sep 2010 16:05:30 +0000Rob Boston2111 at https://www.au.orghttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/defusing-hate-the-church-state-wall-can-stop-a-rising-wave-of-intolerance#commentsPledge Provocation: What's Wrong With Knowing Your Rights?https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/pledge-provocation-whats-wrong-with-knowing-your-rights
<a href="/about/people/bathija">Sandhya Bathija</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>Recently, the <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,550063,00.html">Fox News Channel</a> rang up the Rev. Barry Lynn, AU's executive director, to discuss what he thinks about reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools.</p>
<p>Since they asked, he answered.</p>
<p>"The Pledge of Allegiance creates a constitutional problem," he said. "You have to tell students they can opt out."</p>
<p>For some reason, this statement has generated some controversy – as if it is so reprehensible to want to educate students about their rights!</p>
<p>Today, my colleague Rob Boston appeared on Fox's show "America's Newsroom" to clear up a few things.</p>
<p>He said this is not about whether the Pledge does or doesn't belong in the classroom – that is left for another day. This is simply about informing students that they are not required to stand and recite the Pledge if it goes against their moral, political or religious beliefs. He recommended that this be done via a student handbook or information sent home to parents, just as schools clarify other student rights and responsibilities.</p>
<p>Rob also pointed out that informing students of their rights upfront can help head off lawsuits down the line – a laudable goal.</p>
<p>This is nothing new. The U.S. Supreme Court made it clear that schools cannot require students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance back in 1943. In <a href="http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&amp;vol=319&amp;invol=624"><em>West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette</em></a>, the high court declared unconstitutional West Virginia's statute requiring all school students to salute the flag.</p>
<p>"[N]o official," the court wrote, "high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein."</p>
<p>So what is the problem with informing students about this decision?</p>
<p>I can tell you what the problem is with NOT informing teachers, students and parents about it.</p>
<p>When I worked as a volunteer attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, we helped an eighth-grade student who chose not to stand for the Pledge at his public school. As a Jehovah's Witness, he knew it was against his religious beliefs to partake in saluting the flag. He also knew his rights.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, his teachers did not. When his teacher noticed he refused to stand, she ridiculed this student in front of the class and demanded he stand for the Pledge the next day. She went so far as to announce before his peers that he was "unpatriotic" and unsupportive of her son, who was fighting in Afghanistan.</p>
<p>Later that week, other teachers and students began harassing the boy as well. He explained to them that he had a right not to stand, but they didn't believe or accept it.</p>
<p>Fortunately, one sharply-worded letter to the school from the ACLU cleared things up. But considering the Supreme Court issued the Barnette decision 66 years ago, that should not have been necessary.</p>
<p>Nor should an issue resolved in the 1940s still be making headlines. But the fact that some people are bound and determined to manufacture controversy over an innocuous statement by Lynn just further proves how badly Americans really are in need of knowing their rights.</p>
</div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/religion-public-schools-and-universities">Religion in Public Schools and Universities</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/fox-news-channel">Fox News Channel</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/jehovahs-witnesses">Jehovah&#039;s Witnesses</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/pledge-allegiance">Pledge of Allegiance</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/west-virginia-state-board-education-v-barnette">West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette</a></span></div></div>Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:35:25 +0000Sandhya Bathija2386 at https://www.au.orghttps://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/pledge-provocation-whats-wrong-with-knowing-your-rights#comments